When you listen to Bad Sports, it's clear the Denton, Texas band has been nourished on classic rock and old-school punk — the likes of pioneering bands like The Ramones and Cheap Trick.

That's not to say they haven't forged their own musical path, though. Despite starting to play together in 2007, the past few years have been formative for Bad Sports and according to the band, they've finally achieved a confidence in their identity and sound.

You can hear that in the sincerity of songs like "Free Spirit," which features Orville Neeley's raspy voice, lamenting the heartache he's going through because of giving someone the distance she needs.

Bad Sports are playing on Friday night with Radioactivity (featuring members of Bad Sports and The Marked Men) along with Ottawa's Steve Adamyk Band. The show is happening at Gabba Hey, the nighttime venue at the back of the City Centre.

10 p.m., $10.

Cosmo Doris w/ Street Meat, Zorch @ Pressed, 8:30 p.m. Saturday, $10

Dylan Hendrick comes from Belleville, Ont., where the music scene — with the exception of a couple of bands — is pretty meagre (I'm able to say this bluntly and affectionately because it's my hometown).

It's a welcome surprise, then, to press play on one of Dylan's creations under his pseudonym, Cosmo Doris, and be met with what feels like a lush, electronic musical celebration.

Dylan doesn't mind the solitary nature of making eccentric pop music in Belleville because it allows him to become fully immersed in what he's making, without distractions or comparison to peers.

He'll be coming up for air on Saturday, though, to venture to our town for a show at Pressed. Cosmo Doris is performing alongside Ottawa's Street Meat, and Zorch from Austin, Texas.

Also on Saturday night, listeners will probably be familiar with the headliners of a show at the Glue Pot Pub on Queen Street. When it comes to retro, surfy, B-movie soundtrack instrumentals, The Flaps have done a good job at cornering the market here.

Nonetheless, after more than a decade of sporadic shows, other ongoing musical projects and two The Flaps albums under their belts, the band has decided to go on an indefinite hiatus.

The band's guitarist, Pat Lawlor, says it feels like a bit of a shame but he never figured it would last this long to start with!

To thank friends and family for their support over the years, The Flaps are holding a goodbye show. It'll feature openers RiishiVon Rex and DJ Wig.

While your Saturday might be about goodbye parties, Sunday's focus is Surprise Party. That's the name of the Winnipeg band set to perform in town that night.

Members of Surprise Party have admitted part of their goal as a group is to get people's attention, and that means their live show usually incorporates costumes, makeup, and rambunctious on-stage behaviour.

Still, when you listen to Surprise Party's most recent album Heart of Love, it's clear the music has legs enough to support them.

Between band practice, full-time jobs and schoolwork, the band has managed to book a cross-country tour in their multi-coloured 1994 Dodge Ram, which stops at Mugshots on Sunday. An exciting band from Montreal, Small Teeth, is also on the bill, along with Ottawa's Swollen Eyes.

8 p.m., $8.

Thus Owls @ Ottawa Jazz Festival, 8 p.m. Tuesday (Canada Day), Free

With Canada Day on Tuesday, it's the perfect opportunity to drop by the last day of the Ottawa Jazz Festival. It's double-whammy, too, because seeing any of the acts that day won't cost you a thing; the perfect way to spend the day before taking a stroll over to Parliament Hill for the fireworks.

If you're going to be downtown in the late afternoon, it's worth catching Thus Owls at the Laurier Avenue Canadian Music Stage at 5 p.m.

The band includes the husband and wife duo of Simon and Erika Angell, who met while Simon was playing in Patrick Watson's band. Erika, who is Swedish, was supporting Patrick Watson for some European shows, and she and Simon immediately connected over their similar musical styles.

The two have been making intricate, colourful music since then. It's sure to translate into a captivating live show.